PAYOUT CORRUPTION: 2 City Hall employees, 12 barangay officials admin raps over AICS cut

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor and Jennifer P. Rendon

Fourteen individuals—including two Iloilo City Hall employees and 12 barangay officials—are facing administrative charges before the Office of the Ombudsman over alleged widespread and systemic deductions from the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) cash aid.

DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian filed the 47-page complaint on Dec. 11, citing testimonies and findings that beneficiaries were forced to give back PHP 2,000 from their PHP 10,000 payouts during distributions held on Nov. 7, 11, and 12 across 16 barangays in Jaro and Arevalo.

The respondents are:

1. Jobert Lim – City Hall personnel
2. Janicol Dizon – City Hall personnel
3. Gina Elauria – Barangay captain, Taytay Zone II, Jaro
4. Jingjing Pineda – Barangay kagawad, Taytay Zone II, Jaro
5. Amadeo Sultan – Barangay captain, Simon Ledesma, Jaro
6. Barangay kagawad (name withheld), Simon Ledesma, Jaro
7. Barangay treasurer (name withheld), Simon Ledesma, Jaro
8. Visamin Canal – Barangay captain, Quezon, Arevalo
9. Barangay kagawad (name withheld), Quezon, Arevalo
10. Remedio Bedia – Barangay captain, Lanit, Jaro
11. Kagawad Juntado – Lanit, Jaro
12. Kagawad Gonzales – Lanit, Jaro
13. Rizaline Delmo – Barangay captain, Quintin Salas, Jaro
14. Victoria Rowel – Barangay kagawad, Quintin Salas, Jaro

They face administrative complaints for grave misconduct, abuse of authority, and violations of Section 3(e) of Republic Act 3019 (Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act) and Section 4(c) of Republic Act 6713 (Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees).

The complainant is DSWD Assistant Secretary for Regional Operations Paul Ledesma, who also led the special fact-finding team.

According to Gatchalian, multiple beneficiaries testified that barangay officials coerced them into surrendering a portion of their aid after leaving the payout sites.

“They were re-victimized by people in authority,” he said. “Aid is for the victims of crisis. It should go directly to them—no one should interfere, even elected officials.”

Gatchalian said this was the first time the DSWD had filed administrative complaints involving such a large group of public officials. He emphasized that this was not an isolated incident but a “pre-planned, orchestrated, and systemic” scheme dating back to the COVID-19 pandemic, based on patterns identified during the investigation.

The DSWD also requested the Ombudsman to issue a preventive suspension order against the respondents while the investigation is ongoing.

“We took this step immediately so that if the Ombudsman finds it necessary to issue a preventive suspension, these individuals won’t be in a position to repeat what they did,” Gatchalian said.

Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano has reportedly assured the DSWD that the case will be prioritized.

Ledesma said the complainants reported threats and intimidation from respondents, particularly in neighborhoods where both parties reside.

He added that text messages and names have surfaced pointing to alleged masterminds, but these remain unverified and inadmissible without formal statements.

He confirmed that Dizon, one of the City Hall employees, is assigned to the Atipan Center, the city’s one-stop service hub.

“When the complaints emerged, some of the respondents allegedly began issuing threats to silence the victims,” Ledesma said.

He added that further criminal and civil cases would be filed soon, and more respondents may be named as the investigation continues.

Ledesma also encouraged other victims to come forward.

“The filing of these cases is the only way to stop this practice. We are aiming for their perpetual disqualification from public office,” he said.

“I haven’t seen it yet because I was quite busy this morning. Once I see it, we can give a reaction […] We’ll probably wait for the papers first before we can give a reaction,” she said in an ambush interview.

Iloilo City Lone District Rep. Julienne “JamJam” Baronda urged that those responsible, including the alleged masterminds behind the scheme, be held criminally liable. She also called on the DSWD to investigate similar cases reported in 2024.

“The DSWD has our full support in ensuring that these perpetrators – including the masterminds and their co-conspirators – are held accountable,” she said.

She encouraged other residents whose names may have been used without their consent to claim AICS benefits to come forward and file complaints at the DSWD-6.

Liga ng mga Barangay President Irene Ong also weighed in, emphasizing that barangay officials implicated in the misuse of AICS funds will not receive assistance from the league.

“Since then, we have been telling the barangay captains that if they did something wrong, it is you who will face it. We will not help you. That is your own doing,” he said.

Ong confirmed that his office had not yet received formal complaints but vowed to act if any are filed.

The AICS program provides immediate and temporary aid—including food, transportation, medical, educational, and burial assistance—to individuals and families in crisis. The Iloilo City payout has been suspended and is expected to resume in January 2026.